Emergency Powers, Presidential Time, Brain Remodeling

National Emergencies and the US Constitution Guest: Chris Edelson, Assistant Professor of Government, American University School of Public Affairs, Author of “Emergency Presidential Power: From the Drafting of the Constitution to the War on Terror” President Trump has declared a National Emergency at the southern US border and plans to redirect some Defense Department funding to supplement the money Congress gave him for a border wall. On Monday, sixteen states with Democratic attorneys general filed a federal lawsuit to block the plan, arguing that it’s unconstitutional. What does the Constitution say about the President’s power to declare a national emergency? And does the situation at the border qualify?  Who Cares How the President Spends His Time? Guest: Stacy Cordery, Professor of History, Iowa State University We can’t imagine many jobs more stressful than being President of the United States. With the well-being of the nation on your shoulders, it’d be tough to ever step away from the job and recharge or get enough sleep. President Trump’s work ethic has been under scrutiny recently because some leaked copies of his daily schedule show frequent, large blocks of unscheduled time where the President is reported to be watching TV, reading the papers, sending Tweets and making calls to friends, aides and members of Congress. Should this worry us? You can Remodel your Bain at Any Age! Guest: Michael Merzenich, Professor Emeritus of Neuroscience at the University of California, San Francisco A lot of us have watched a loved one start to lose memory and brain power as they age. It can feel inevitable – and for a long-time scientist agreed that once the brain stops developing in childhood, it’s basically all downhill from there. But today, researchers believe your brain can improve at any age. Neuroscientist Michael Merzenichis one of the leading researchers in this field. He helped invent the cochlear implant, which has led to a much better understanding of the brain’s “plasticity” as it’s called. Why it Matters that the World's Population May be Shrinking Guest: John Ibbitson, Journalist, Co-Author of “Empty Planet: The Shock of Global Population Decline” When you were deciding how many kids to have, I bet you thought about things like money and timing and emotional stuff like, “does our family feel complete yet?” Maybe you also thought about whether your house was big enough for another child. On a global scale, experts have been fretting for decades about Earth running out of room. They’ve warned of an impending population crisis that will stress our supply of food, water and land. Cue the apocalyptic soundtrack. But now there’s another group of population experts out there worried that maybe we’ve got the opposite problem –that somewhere around 2050 the Earth’s population is going to start shrinking. Crisis averted, right? Not entirely. A Real Master Builder: Paid to Play with LEGO Guest: Noel Straatsma, LEGO Master Model Builder, LEGOLAND Discovery Centre Toronto The Master Builders of the LEGO Universe are back in theaters, attempting to avert Armamageddon (when Mom puts all the LEGOs in storage because the kids won’t quit fighting over them.) Optimistic LEGO guy Emmet leads the charge in this sequel. He’s come a long way from the first film when he had no Master Builder skills. Master Builders in the LEGO movies save the world with their super-creativity. In real life, what do Master Builders do? Romantic Comedies Worth Watching Guest: Kirsten Hawkes, ParentPreviews.com Forget the stereotype about women preferring romantic comedies at the theater. Last year, Fandango surveyed more than 3,000 female moviegoers and found action movies are the most popular genre for women. RomComs were last on the list. Maybe that’s one reason why “Isn’t It Romantic?” did fairly well in theaters over the weekend –it stars Rebel Wilson and roasts all the typical romantic comedy stereotypes, starting with the single girl who gets knocked unconscious and wakes up to a dreamy doctor who’s taken with her beauty.